Let’s carry on with the one of the worst weeks in gaming.
So, Valve and Bethesda suddenly sprung a major change into the PC game modding scene, only to have it rightfully blow up in their faces. It’s an interesting time in the state of gaming when stereotypical ‘good guy’ devs like Valve and Bethesda are playing the role of the Fagin. Thing is, I don’t know why we were all shocked that A) This happened and B) It crashed and burned as badly as it did.
So, Valve and Bethesda suddenly sprung a major change into the PC game modding scene, only to have it rightfully blow up in their faces. It’s an interesting time in the state of gaming when stereotypical ‘good guy’ devs like Valve and Bethesda are playing the role of the Fagin. Thing is, I don’t know why we were all shocked that A) This happened and B) It crashed and burned as badly as it did.
So, let's ask the question: Does Valve and Bethesda's behaviour over the paid mod system mean the end to modders making money before it's even started?
Valve can hardly be considered straight up game devs nowadays, let’s be completely honest. The last time they actually made a game was three years ago. And even then, their ‘games’ are now little more than platforms to create and sustain a constant flow of income. Which as a business practice is completely fine, excellent even. They created and perfected several different markets in their first attempt to do so. But people need to stop giving Valve the easy ride because they made a few good games in the past. So why were we shocked when a company who have the digital game monopoly and turned hats into a sustainable marketplace introduced a way to profit from other peoples work?
Steam Workshop is a funny old place. It’s a place where people can make custom in-game items for other people to enjoy. Most of the time, this takes the form of visual changes in the games like different costumes, but can stretch as far as interface plug-ins and HUD modifiers. It’s a hotbed for creativity and allows the modding community to thrive. Then, Valve and Bethesda double-teamed players of Skyrim when they forcibly introduced a paid mod scheme without prior notice or any testing periods. That was their first mistake.
Steam Workshop is a funny old place. It’s a place where people can make custom in-game items for other people to enjoy. Most of the time, this takes the form of visual changes in the games like different costumes, but can stretch as far as interface plug-ins and HUD modifiers. It’s a hotbed for creativity and allows the modding community to thrive. Then, Valve and Bethesda double-teamed players of Skyrim when they forcibly introduced a paid mod scheme without prior notice or any testing periods. That was their first mistake.
Image Credit: dorkly.com
Understandably, the gaming community went ballistic. The modding community witnessed fractures like no-one had ever seen, resulting in genuine vitriol for modders who had opted into the service. Those who hadn't opted in were very quick to criticise the 75% cut that Valve and Bethesda were making off with from all sales (30% to Valve and 45% to Bethesda). To put that into perspective, Apple only take 30% for App Store submissions. But more importantly, the average consumer did not take to this well. As far as I can tell, it’s not a problem that the players had with paying for mods, it’s the way it was turned into a secondary marketplace.
Given the choice, the consensus amongst gamers was that if a mod was good, they would wish to help out the mods creator with monetary aid. An often cited fix to this system that was suggested in the comments to Valve’s blog post about the system was to offer a donation button to the creator rather than boil down the market to a selection of overly-divided micro-transactions. The fact that what we got was a way for Valve and Bethesda to profit from work that they had had no part in meant that the system could not exist in any way, resulting in a shame-ridden admission of defeat from both companies a mere four days after the launch of the initiative.
Given the choice, the consensus amongst gamers was that if a mod was good, they would wish to help out the mods creator with monetary aid. An often cited fix to this system that was suggested in the comments to Valve’s blog post about the system was to offer a donation button to the creator rather than boil down the market to a selection of overly-divided micro-transactions. The fact that what we got was a way for Valve and Bethesda to profit from work that they had had no part in meant that the system could not exist in any way, resulting in a shame-ridden admission of defeat from both companies a mere four days after the launch of the initiative.
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Personally, I stand very much on the fence with the idea of paying for mods. On paper, I would like to support the people who put serious time and energy into improving and in some cases just straight up fixing games that have been left incomplete by their developers. I also would love to support the people who continue to make games fresh with expanded lore and content that the official developers just don’t bother making, and I'm all for the bat-shit insane ‘what-if’ mods like the GTA5 Whale Spawner getting their recognition. However, in an age where game publishers are keen to turn any game into a marketplace first before it is a justifiable retail priced game, it’s not an idea we can feasibly support. This is why I am so pleased that projects like Yooka-Laylee get funded within the hour they are posted onto KickStarter, whilst EA get mocked for butchering and dividing up features on the new Star Wars Battlefront.
There are noticeable exceptions to the rule. The LittleBigPlanet games give players the full set of level creation tools and basic coding abilities and some of the results of this have resulted in full games within the LBP engine, as well as incredibly well designed levels following the more traditional sidescroller format. And if we’re talking about paid content, games like Warframe make it possible to purchase in game items, weapons and characters with real money whilst also making 100% of this content obtainable without spending a single penny. Instead, their incremental free updates focus on introducing new play styles, characters, skills, weapons and GUI improvements, rather than developing this content into paid DLC packages.
There are noticeable exceptions to the rule. The LittleBigPlanet games give players the full set of level creation tools and basic coding abilities and some of the results of this have resulted in full games within the LBP engine, as well as incredibly well designed levels following the more traditional sidescroller format. And if we’re talking about paid content, games like Warframe make it possible to purchase in game items, weapons and characters with real money whilst also making 100% of this content obtainable without spending a single penny. Instead, their incremental free updates focus on introducing new play styles, characters, skills, weapons and GUI improvements, rather than developing this content into paid DLC packages.
Image Credit: themagazine.ca
And that’s talking about content made by the developers. Valve and Bethesda were very keen to sit on their arses doing fuck all and watching the money roll in. But gamers stood up to these introductions and got the results they want.
The idea of idle profit from a company that makes plenty of profit as it is simply a step too far for Valve. At least Bethesda actually do make a great deal of content to begin with, regardless of the past backlash over their own DLC. If you want to support a modder, donate to that modder; Help them out with bills or tuition or food stamps or whatever. Make life better for the person who has improved your game. Do not line the pockets of a company who already makes billions of dollars just because they offered a platform for innovation that has already netted them millions or billions of dollars as it is.
Bottom line is this: I think everyone would have acted with a little less vitriol if we'd been so much as asked about this before it was slammed into our faces. Come on, Valve. Seriously, Bethesda. For companies who claim to hear what we want, you'll just as quickly sell out the people who work the hardest to show their passion if you think there's money to be made. We want good games, not another market to manage.
The idea of idle profit from a company that makes plenty of profit as it is simply a step too far for Valve. At least Bethesda actually do make a great deal of content to begin with, regardless of the past backlash over their own DLC. If you want to support a modder, donate to that modder; Help them out with bills or tuition or food stamps or whatever. Make life better for the person who has improved your game. Do not line the pockets of a company who already makes billions of dollars just because they offered a platform for innovation that has already netted them millions or billions of dollars as it is.
Bottom line is this: I think everyone would have acted with a little less vitriol if we'd been so much as asked about this before it was slammed into our faces. Come on, Valve. Seriously, Bethesda. For companies who claim to hear what we want, you'll just as quickly sell out the people who work the hardest to show their passion if you think there's money to be made. We want good games, not another market to manage.
By Mike Owen
@ThatMikeOwen
The Editor in Chief of Foul Entertainment, Mike edits most of what you see on the site. He runs the production of our podcasts, and currently pens Pop Culture Club and The Death of Video Games.
@ThatMikeOwen
The Editor in Chief of Foul Entertainment, Mike edits most of what you see on the site. He runs the production of our podcasts, and currently pens Pop Culture Club and The Death of Video Games.